NBA launches Jr. NBA League in Puerto Rico

July 24, 2018

The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced the launch of the first Jr. NBA league in Puerto Rico. The Jr. NBA Puerto Rico League will be comprised of 30 teams for boys (ages 14 and under) and will feature a draft event to select teams on July 27.

The Jr. NBA Puerto Rico League’s regular season will run from July 27- Sept. 16 and will be followed by a playoff tournament on Sept. 22-23, culminating with the semifinal and championship games on Sept. 29 and 30, respectively. Additionally, on Sept. 30, there will be a Jr. NBA All-Star Game and Skills Challenge where select Jr. NBA league players will compete.

"The inaugural Jr. NBA League in Puerto Rico is another milestone in the continued growth of the game throughout the country,” said President, Puerto Rico Basketball Federation, Yum E. Ramos Perales. “Thanks to the efforts of the NBA and the Department of Recreation and Sports, youth in Puerto Rico have another way to connect with the game of basketball.”

The Jr. NBA, the league’s global youth basketball program for boys and girls, teaches the fundamental skills as well as the core values of the game at the grassroots level in an effort to help grow and improve the youth basketball experience for players, coaches and parents. During the 2017-18 season, the Jr. NBA reached more than 26 million youth in 71 countries through a variety of camps, clinics, skills challenges, league play and outreach events.